Ascension
by Wynter's Fall
Summary: Ash returns from the Unova League, broken and battered but never defeated. As the tournament to find the best trainer in the world begins, can he find the will to battle again? And will he be able to defeat the dark forces that circle ever closer?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: A reboot of an idea, the reasons for said reboot are at the bottom, enjoy!

Chapter One: The Beginning

Ash glanced up at the end of the road Pallet town finally coming into fight after months of battling. He had just arrived back from the Unova League and as he breathed in the fresh air he thought. 'There is no place like home.' He ran into the town, the citizens of Pallet Town gathered round at the sight of their hero. The children chanted his name and the crowd applauded him for his success. Ash stood there shaking hands, refusing to sign autographs because he thought it made him a bit conceited. He wasn't a movie star or anything; he was just a normal person doing what he loved. Finally the crowd died down gradually dispersing .Ash walked towards his house with Pikachu cheering happily being perched upon his shoulder.

He smiled, opening the door. Walking in he flicked the lights yet suddenly a giant shout of "Surprise!" came from the room, followed by an over excited Gliscor barreling into his trainer.

Ash laughed, saying. "I missed you too buddy." It hopped happily around the ground buzzing with excitement.

He glanced around at his friends and family gathered around a table. He smiled at them.

Gary was the first to open his loud mouth. "So Ashy-boy how was Unova?" Ash noting the teasing nick-name that Gary had formerly used was back now.

Ash stared at his old rival; a grin lit his face while they hugged the best friends missing another's company over the long years. He then turned and saw Misty, Brock, Ash, Max and May followed by Dawn, Professor Oak and Paul. He began to greet each in turn, but was interrupted by his mother's announcement of dinner.

The meal was amicable, each person discussing their recent achievements. May was travelling through the Kanto contest circuit. Misty had turned Cerulean City gym into the sixth most powerful in the Kanto region. Dawn had just finished second on the Johto circuit. Paul was re-running through the battle frontier and would be facing Brandon, The Pyramid King in the near future.

Ash, Gary and Paul were discussing the potential benefits of Pokémon regeneration through, both trainers keen to try out Professor Oak's new machine with the various fossils.

Ash's mother stifled an upcoming sniffle. She couldn't believe how quickly he had grown over the course of his journey, what made her sad though was the fact that he had never met his father. Well he probably had but Ash just didn't know it.

Ash's father was the one great mystery of Ash's life, each year he received gifts up until he turned ten when his father had sent him all that he needed for his journey with the promise that they would meet in the future. Unfortunately for both Ash and his mother, the future hadn't come yet, but maybe it would soon.

Soon they were in the lounge room watching the television just hanging out like old times, telling stories both from the past and fresh ones.

Ash was about to exit and head to his bedroom. He would be sharing with Paul apparently whilst Brock roomed with Gary over at Daisy's place. As he rose though, the news came on with an urgent message.

"Just two days ago Cynthia lost her title to the mysterious Tobias all of her Pokémon wiped out with the challenger losing just his Darkrai and Latios. The champ has since gone AWOL from her humiliating loss and Tobias has opened up a challenge for all trainers. In two months' time the Ever Grande City Tournament will be held with the winner earning the right to face this seemingly all-conquering foe. Can anyone beat this almighty trainer? Or will we be objected to a reign of domination for the foreseeable future? We will soon find out!" The screen faded to black nothingness.

The tension in the room was so thick an Arceus-damned chainsaw wouldn't have been able to cut it.

All three rivals stared at each other intently as they all realized the same thing, they all wanted to join, but most of all they all wanted to win. Suddenly though they all grinned and following that the tension was relieved. They all wanted to win, they always had, but it didn't mean that they needed to lose their friendship over it though.

Ash turned to leave when again the news channel was flashed to something else. This time it was Tobias, the new Sinnoh Champion who stood as the camera looked up at him adding an effect that made the viewer feel like he was inferior to the man, much like a servant gazing at his master in fear.

"An initial field of fifty-two members has been chosen, the current and former champions of the Leagues, the remaining spots shall be filled through qualifiers. The field will be rounded down to two-hundred and fifty-six." The screen then flashed to show the fifty-two members who had been chosen. Ash was getting ready to find out information about the qualifiers when he saw his name at the top of the list.

Ash's friends all turned to glance at him looks of curiosity upon their faces. Ash scratched the back of his head and said. "I didn't know they were counting the Orange League."

"You know, you never told us about your Unova journey Ash." Brock said.

Ash just shrugged. "I lost in the finals. It was no big deal." He replied, turning back to watch the T.V.

The remaining list was rounded out with the usual suspects included. Wallace, Steven, Lance, Alder, and Cynthia of course. However, as he Ash thought that at least three people were missing from that list, he contemplated. Three champions that should have been there, but their names had been left out. Curiously, he even checked the database, finding no mention of them, but he remembered.

Four trainers who had taken the Pokémon world by storm, two of them had been born and raised in Pallet; the other two had been Johtoans. Something was whirring in his mind; T.V updates ten years ago, battles in the Indigo Coliseum, and three years later the greatest battle of all time atop Mount Silver. All gone from history, the annals of time seemed to have wiped legends from the mind of everyone except Ash.

Soon enough the group all bade each other goodbye. Ash, Paul and Gary decided to meet outside Pallet tomorrow for some joint training. The training was looking to strengthen some of their Pokémon and devise some tactics, testing new strategies and teaching new moves before the tournament.

xXx

Ash absolutely refused to go through what he had with his Gible again. From now on his Pokémon would be mastering moves before a tournament or they wouldn't use them at all. Then again his Gibles Draco Meteor had been the difference between him winning and losing many battles in the competition, maybe only under extreme circumstances this time.

"And Cynthia's Garchomp has been taken out by Tobias' Latios with a deadly Luster Purge attack!" The commentator screamed into the microphone.

Garchomp fell from the sky with a sickening crack, colliding with the ground. The camera panned to Cynthia who in shock recalled her faithful Pokémon and walked out of the stadium without a word. The audience was silent, in shock of the events that they had just witnessed.

Cynthia was meant to be undefeatable, the strongest champion in decades, she hadn't lost a match in over four years during her reign. The second longest reigning champion in history second only to Samuel Oak.

What happened when the undefeatable was defeated? What did that make the victor? He who could conquer the impossible was meant to be impossible, they weren't meant to exist.

Ash watched again and again, replaying the tape determined to find a weakness which happened to be a flaw in any of Tobias' Pokémon. Of course he couldn't find any, they were legendaries' the strongest of them all. They weren't meant to be captured, well they were apparently uncatchable.

How much of a myth was that? All the Pokémon he had come across that were near deaths door. Mewtwo, Uxie, Mesprit, Azelf, Lugia, how many legendaries he could have captured if he had just thrown an Arceus-damned Pokeball.

He knew why he hadn't though; it wasn't the right thing to do. Ash had gone back to see Aaron on Iron Island after the Unova tournament to learn more about aura, learning how to control it; to learn what the heck it was.

The first thing Aaron had taught him was balance. Aura was life, and for aura, for life to exist there needed to be balance. The Legendaries were the balance between order and chaos. Without the legendaries or without their presence overseeing the world the world would fall into chaos.

Ash shuddered to think of what had happened to the environments that the legendaries had been taken out of. Unless the legendaries had chosen to go willingly (which he could not see having ever occurred.)

You see, a legendary Pokémon's sole responsibility was to look after the land that they inhabited. Without them the land would wilt, perish or struggle to survive unless the legendary deigned their control over to another. However, as long as the progenitors were not captured all within the world would be fine. The progenitors were the first of the legendary species; they were more than able of taking over a dead legendary Pokémon's environment thus saving it from destruction. The only problem with that theory though, was the fact that the progenitors had seemed to have abandoned the Pokémon Universe.

The last known progenitor that had been spotted had occurred over a hundred years ago. All Ash and the rest of the world could do was hope that they were watching and ready to step in on the grim day when a legendary would fall. He turned off the television hearing his phone rang. Sighing he picked it up. "Hello." He said with a stifled yawn, Pikachu already resting on his shoulder.

"Ash." The voice said, Ash recognizing the caller immediately.

"Tobias!" He exclaimed in a hushed whisper so that the remainder of the Ketchum household would not be alerted to the conversation he was carrying out.

"I just sat at my desk and you're exploits during your latest journey are the first pieces of news to have landed here. The Champions heard things that are normally kept secret are at the top of my daily list regardless of what happens throughout the Pokémon world. I know all about Team Plasma, and most of all I know all about what happened at the Unova League Challenge."

"Oh I know what the champions hear, and don't you dare tell anyone." Ash hissed over the phone his voice laced with murderous intent. "Getting Lance to stay silent was practically impossible."

"Oh trust me, that's one of the last things on my mind and Lance was right, you should have been given a hero's welcome. I'm calling to let you know to be ready, in four days' time I'll be in Pallet waiting for you, consider it a warm up before the last battle that we both know is going to be between the two of us." And the phone clicked in silence.

Ash threw the phone against the wall in anger, how did they know? What had happened should have been between, Ash, Alder and him. Ash couldn't even bear to utter the name of the man he had met during his travels; he still bore the marks that had resulted of their final battle, the scars refused to go away no matter how they were treated. He hadn't wanted them gone though, they were reminders of what he had sacrificed to win, to win at all costs, they were the marks of what victory actually tasted like and he hated them and himself more than any enemy he had ever faced.

XxX

Five Months ago… (Ash's PoV)

Accumula town was the first place that Ash had reached after his arrival in Unova. He had spent the last three days there having caught a Tepig to go with his team that already consisted of Pikachu, Snivy and Rufflet. He was about to leave headed on his way to Striation city where his first badge awaited him. That was when he saw them, the army of followers in a strange white and blue uniform marching towards the city center. Being curious he followed, one hand already on his belt in case he was jumped. Pikachu was already sparking with electricity waiting for anything out of the ordinary.

The entire town had gathered as a man in robes strode to the stage, cocky, confident, Ash had met men like these and from the outset he had goose bumps. Something big was going to happen in Unova and soon, if these people had a say in things anyway.

Slowly the man spoke. "My name is Ghetsis. I am here representing Team Plasma. Today, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to talk to you about Pokémon liberation."

The mere topic drew gasps from the crowd as they realized what they meant, these people expected trainers to free their Pokémon for some Arceus-forsaken reason. 'Good luck.' Ash thought snidely.

A world without Pokémon and humans interacting in the way they did was impossible. Pokémon loved to battle, people loved to battle, that was the truth but most of all. Pokémon liked having someone in charge, they were subservient creatures. Most of them anyway, he grinned as he remembered the struggles he had faced with his Pikachu at the beginning of their journey. It had been a battle of wills, both wanted to lead, both wanted and expected full obedience, now though. They were nothing more than a team, both as integral to one's life as another, both leading and following each other at the same time. Their relationship was what any trainer should aspire to have with their Pokémon.

"I'm sure most of you believe that we humans and Pokémon are partners that have come to live together because we want and need each other. However... Is that really the truth? Have you ever considered that perhaps us humans... only assumed that this is the truth? Ghetsis continued.

Ash began to notice many trainers agreeing with this complete and utter bullshit, nodding and looking around expecting everyone to suddenly realize that humans were terrible. Oh how easily people could be manipulated when their given a little push in the right direction.

"Pokémon are subject to the selfish commands of Trainers... They get pushed around when they are our "partners" at work... Can anyone say with confidence that there is no truth in what I'm saying? Asked Ghetsis receiving no answer from the crowd who were deep in thought about what he was saying.

"Now, ladies and gentlemen, Pokémon are different from humans. They are living beings that contain unknown potential. They are living beings from whom we humans have much to learn. Tell me, what is our responsibility toward these wonderful beings called Pokémon? That's right! We must liberate the Pokémon! Then, and only then, will humans and Pokémon truly be equals. Everyone, I end my words here today by imploring you to consider the relationship between people and Pokémon... and the correct way to proceed. We sincerely appreciate your attention."

As quick as they had appeared they were gone, no time for questions. And without questions there were no answers.

Ash gazed around. The crowd began to disperse, noting as a few trainers began to release their Pokémon abandoning them to the harshness of the Pokémon world. Most of these Pokémon would be able to survive; the majority had been lived in the wild for most of their life. Then there were the special few, the ones that had hatched from eggs or they were the trainer's original starter Pokémon.

This was why not having the original starter Pokémon in one's side was considered the greatest taboo of them all. Releasing a starter was as good as effectively killing them; death to a released starter was as inevitable as death to a Wurmple from a Swellow.

Slowly he began to wade through the Pokémon until he found one; an Axew barely a week old was their paws over its eyes hiding trying to hide itself from the view. The cold air already had it shivering; it wouldn't last the next few days if he didn't do anything. Crouching down he took the paws off its eyes and greeted it. "How you going buddy? I'm Ash."

The Axew stared at him with a mournful gaze. "Axew, Ax, Ax!" It cried.

Ash took it to mean that it was scared without its trainer wondering why he had abandoned him.

Slowly he used his Aura conveying feeling of warmth and comfort, getting across the message that he was a friend.

The Axew stared at him speechless as he felt the fear and anguish in the Axew extinguish slowly until all it felt nothing. Normally once this had happened a Pokémon would be happy, all feelings of dread or sadness wiped from their system leaving only happy emotions. This wasn't the case with this Pokémon, it had no happy emotions at all, the Axew had already resigned itself to the fact it would die without care and there seemed to be no-one who would care for it. Of course this Axew didn't know who Ash was, more importantly; this Axew didn't know Ash would give it the very thing it needed. Hope.

Hope was a powerful thing; its influence over you was an influence of extremes. You either had hope or you didn't. With hope, there was always a reason to go forward, whether you were a Pokémon or a Trainer. Hope drove you to keep trying even if the chips were down and the odds were against you.

Ash was a man who thrived on hope, hope that the world could become a better place, hope that he would become a Pokémon Master. Hope was only powerful if it was in the correct hands, meaningless if it was in the hands of someone without the power to do anything with it.

He placed the Axew in a Pokeball, noticing the town square had been deserted all for one man.

The man stared at him with a stunned gaze upon his face. His green hair billowed in the wind as the hat atop his head moved with the breeze threatening to come off at any second. He stared at Ash and he pointed a finger at his Pikachu. "You're Pokémon spoke to me." The man with a gaze of wonder. "Such delightful things exploded from his mouth, let me hear him again, let me hear you're Pokémon!" He shouted as he released a Purrloin.

Ash smirked, the guy might be a bit strange but he never turned down a challenge. "Let's do it Pikachu!" he held his Pokedex out so he could gain the necessary data on the Pokémon for Professor Oak only to hear the trainer snort derisively.

"Heh, A Pokedex holder, and from the looks of that Pokémon a well-travelled one too. Tell me trainer how many Pokémon have you enslaved, forced to be under you're command without any say in the matter? How many Pokémon have you forced to evolve when they were perfectly happy the way they were? How many?" He asked red with rage.

"None!" Ash shouted back. "I love my Pokémon equally and always let them make the choice! That's how a real trainer should act in life; I value the relationships I have with my Pokémon much more than the power that they possess. The true power of Pokémon is revealed through love, dedication and a whole lot of hard work! Pikachu, Thunderbolt."

Ash's Pikachu ran at the Purrloin its cheeks sparkling as it unleashed a devastating bolt of electricity.

"Purrloin, dodge and use Sand-attack." The trainer ordered calmly. The Purrloin easily dodged the Thunderbolt before digging up the ground flinging dirt towards Pikachu who ran into it blinding himself.

"Don't stop Pikachu, Quick Attack straight ahead." Pikachu continued to run through the dirt instinctively closing its eyes to prevent further blindness. Once the attack stopped he squinted through to see a small purple blur millimeters to his left. "Spin through with Iron Tail!" Ash shouted, knowing the battle was won as Pikachu whirled in the air, tail glinting as it brought it swinging around into the skull of the Purrloin instantly knocking it out with a sickening crunch.

The trainer recalled his Pokémon and looked stunned. "You're Pokémon, it's… its happy."

He then turned to leave but something held him back, still with his head turned away from Ash he asked. "What do you picture an ideal world to be?"

Ash paused. What did he think an ideal world was? And what would one do if they could change one aspect of the entire universe? "Coexistence." He finally answered. "Humans need Pokémon and Pokémon need humans; we just need to find the right balance."

The trainer looked at him thoughtful for a second. "You see though, that's where you're wrong. Pokémon don't need humans, humanity holds them back from achieving true power. I have seen what happens when Pokémon are put in the hands of people who aren't like us. And it is for that reason that I will free all Pokémon from human control. Even yours eventually, for the small amount of us must also sacrifice our happiness to prevent sadness and anger. Be careful trainer, for you are the ideal that needs to be overcome for the world to be free…"

xXx

Ash still remembered that days as clearly as he had before. If he had known what was to come he would have killed N right then and there. Now though all he could do was live and regret—regret the choices he had made until the day he died. But if he hadn't made them then he wouldn't even have his Pikachu left by his side. There was a term used by humans, sacrifices had to happen for the greater good. The question Ash now asked himself though was who's good should he have sacrificed for. His ideals or N's? It was too late to change sides, and it was too late to take back what was done.

xXx

The winds of Mount Silver gusted flakes of snow upwards blinding all who ventured on the mountain. It took months to get used to the constant pain in one's eye with the ice melting upon contact with the skin, the water stinging as drops would run down your face. One could simply wear sunglasses but that would remove the challenge and if there wasn't a challenge what was the purpose of doing anything? All his life he'd challenged himself, to be the best at anything he attempted had been his dream. To be a Pokémon Master had been the greatest challenge that he had ever set himself, it was also one of the simplest goals he had ever achieved.

Everyone wanted to be a Pokémon Master, the question no-one had ever seemed to ask themselves though was what a Pokémon Master was. Some would say it was catching every Pokémon that ever existed; others said it was becoming a Pokémon Champion. How much more difficult they made the achievement out to be. He'd been the Pokémon Champion; in fact he still was the champion if you considered the fact that he had never lost the title. No-one would ever catch every Pokémon in existence either, the so called 'experts' had taken a simple goal and made it impossible to achieve for all but an elite few. Thousands, no make that millions of trainers had come and gone having achieved their goal without even realizing it. They'd return home broken hearted, having gave up on a goal that they had already achieved. Sad isn't it?

For months he had slaved, worked day upon day to achieve his goal. To become the Pokémon Champion, to become a Pokémon Master. The minute he had reached the top though he had realized how much he had gave everything he had sacrificed to become something he already was.

You see, the elite title that was bestowed upon only a select few, the title that every trainer in the universe had begun their journey for, the 'honor' of being considered a Pokémon Master by one's peers was a load of shit. The minute he had reached the top he had torn himself down realizing the truth that so few had ever realized.

Everyone was a Pokémon Master.

No-one had ever seemed to deconstruct the two words, Pokémon, and Master. You see, being a Pokémon Master was being the master of ones Pokémon, working with them through life and winning battles with their talents. A Pokémon master was simply a person who had Pokémon and could use Pokémon. Millions of people had spent their lifetimes all trying to achieve one goal that they had already achieved, The minute Red had actually stopped to contemplate the meaning of the title he had worked for tirelessly to earn, he realized how pointless it was. And in his pursuit of that title he had lost everything worth keeping.

So what does one do when they have already reached a goal that was meant to take a lifetime to complete? He made himself a new challenge, one that would actually challenge him, one that was meant to be impossible. He challenged himself to be the greatest trainer that ever was; he challenged himself to be remembered through millennia. To be the stick that all aspiring trainers measured themselves up to and to be the stick that no-one would ever be able to measure up to again. This was why days after he became the Champion, he quit and travelled straight to Mount Silver, the one place that even the Legendaries were meant to fear. For how could one be the best without facing the best there was to offer? Mount Silver was the greatest challenge of them all and he had conquered it.

He was the best, the best that ever was, and the best that ever will be.

His name was Red and he was going to make sure the world never forget it again.

A/N: The reason I'm re-booting this again. (Is that I've been going over the plot with a dear mate and we agreed that I'd already made too many plot points that wrapping them all up satisfactorily would be practically impossible. So whilst this chapter is practically the same as the last time it was up, each chapter will be different from now on.

Shout out to LightningBlade who is always a big help when these things start, great at giving advice.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Looking for an Reason**

"_For what shall it profit a man, if he gain the whole world, and suffer the loss of his soul?"_

Lavender Town

The Pokémon Tower was the mausoleum of the Pokémon World. A place where Pokémon and on rare occasions, trainers were buried at the end of their days. The place was grim and sombre as an irremovable fog wafted on each floor, left as a result of the multitude of Ghastlys and Haunters that populated the building. Today was the day, the anniversary of his death. He burned the incense, flowers taken from growing Pecha trees, his favourite berry of them all. It was funny how after ten years he could still remember that fact in spite of all that had happened. Of course you remembered everything about the ones you loved the moment they were gone. The epitome read.

_Raticate,_

_Friend first, Pokémon second_

_7th__January 2003 – 23rd__July 2003_

_Trainer - Blue_

Blue looked at the tombstone one last time as he began to rise from his knees and leave the Tower once more. Yet as he got up he knew he was here, he barely ever spoke, in fact you never heard him unless he wanted you to. But that was part of his legend, the silent champion. He never attended the press conferences, never answered the questions from the press. The only way in which anyone ever heard more than two words from him was in his broadcasts. Professor Oak had given the two, Pokedexes in which they could record data and their discoveries. Hints such as not to go into Viridian Forest at night, well the eastern part where the Kakuna would be looking for food, the most effective way to catch a Butterfree or Pidgey. Their works were practically the Bibles for beginner trainers.

The silence that always surrounded Red was something that Gary both liked and hated about the guy. He kept it simple, he didn't like the fame and he didn't like the glory. A sentence from him was more significant than words from someone who drove their point at you all day. Each word struck like a hammer, when he spoke you couldn't help but listen. There was something about him that drove people to him in flocks. He was a mystery, an unsolvable riddle, the Rosetta Stone of human history.

Well he had been, now he was forgotten, a small part of history that would never be remembered due to him and his uncontrollable psychic friend.

"Red." He muttered in greeting as he stood up.

Red just nodded in return, true to form not a word uttered. As they stared looking at each other the memory of that day flashed through Blue's mind.

_The S.S Anne had been docked in Vermillion for three days. In that time Blue hadn't stopped making a name for himself. T.V interviews, newspaper articles, everyone wanted a slice of Oak's Grandson, the future superstar of the league. The media were already touting him as the next champion, some were already saying he'd break the record of his Grandfather and be the longest reigning champ of them all. Blue loved the pressure, the expectation, the weight of it all. Both he and Red knew that he did, he was always the guy that had to be in the spotlight and if he wasn't he found a way to be. The media though, had no clue that they were doing exactly what Blue wanted, they were playing right into his hands._

_The S.S Anne tournament was a friendly competition where people invited to the party could battle if they wished to. It served as a source of entertainment to the people that didn't want to and the trainers that participated got a pretty big bonus for participating. Twenty thousand dollars to the winner, ten to the runner up and one grand to everyone else that participated. Enough money to fund his journey up until Fuschia at least, if he won of course. Blue hadn't been paying attention to the other members of the tournament while he hadn't been battling. He'd been trying to sneak past the sailors and get into the captains room, hopefully so he could teach his Raticate Cut in order to get to Rock Tunnel._

_So when he found out he was matched against Red, boy was he surprised. How the fuck did a kid with absolutely no reputation in the entire Pokémon world get an invite to the most exclusive and extravagant party held in Kanto within the last ten years? He'd just stolen his grandfather's pass on the first day of his journey when it had come in the mail before he left. Old man had no idea that he'd even been invited, he probably wouldn't have come anyway and Blue wasn't one to let an invitation go to waste. So here they were, standing on a boat having a rematch after the events that had occurred on Nugget Bridge. Since then he had trained his team mercilessly, driven them to their limits and then pushed them past it. His Pokémon at first hadn't coped but soon the improvements had been vast. Blue knew he was going to win, he had to._

"_This will be a one on one battle to decide the SS Anne tournament Victor. The competitors Blue and Red shall now select their first Pokémon."_

"_Raticate!" Blue shouted releasing the rodent Pokémon._

"_Charmeleon." Red said releasing his Pokémon cool and composed as always, nothing ever seemed to faze him._

"_Raticate, Super Fang!" Gary ordered as his raticate leapt towards the Charmeleon ready to sink it's fangs into the body of the Fire type._

"_Charmeleon dodge and use Flamethrower." Red stated as his Charmeleon rolled to the side and fired a stream of flames catching the rodent on the flank eliciting a hiss from the Raticate as it landed on the ground._

"_Don't give in Raticate, use Quick Attack." Blue ordered his Raticate ramming into the Charmeleon before Red could so much as open his mouth to order a counter._

"_Now press him and use Tail Whip." Blue ordered as the Charmeleon fell backwards from the Quick Attack. Raticate successfully completed the move lowering the flame Pokémon's defences._

"_Hang tough Charmeleon." Red ordered willing his Pokémon back into the fight._

"_Now let's finish this! Raticate use Bounce!" Blue ordered sensing the end to the battle._

_The audience gasped as Raticate leapt into the air just stopping before the roof as it began to descend streaking downwards. Never had a Raticate been known to be capable of performing this move. As it streaked downwards though disaster struck._

"_Charmeleon use scratch." Red ordered as the flame type got ready to attack the rodent when it was in range. As the two attacks met Charmeleon scratch evolved into a Slash, the claws grew longer and sharper and as he raked the side of Blue's Pokémon the claws reached in underneath the flesh of the rodent and sliced through several arteries and a lung. The Rodent screamed as blood poured out of the opening and Blue recalled it straight away forfeiting the battle. Desperately he forced his way through the crowd but time was not on his side. The crowd wouldn't let him through quick enough no matter how desperately he pushed and shoved against them, barely able to make his way through. He was weak and his Raticate paid the price._

_He sprinted to the Pokémon Centre and ran straight to the desk begging for the nurses assistance. He handed over the Pokémon and his Raticate was taken to the operating theatre as they tried desperately to save his life. For hours they worked on his Pokémon as Blue waited in the lobby praying that his Pokémon would survive, even if it couldn't battle anymore, so long as one of his best friends was alive he'd be happy. Eventually the Nurse emerged Blue and his Pokémon rose to their feet. "How is he?" Blue asked as his Pokémon beamed giving cries of joy believing their friend was alive and well, the Pokémon had never understood the concept of death, they'd never seen it before, they didn't understand what it was._

"_We tried our best but the blood loss was too great." The nurse said. "We're keeping him under sedation, he is awake but in no pain, he has but minutes left. I'll leave you to say your last goodbyes, I'm sorry." The nurse told him as she left to perform her duties_

_Blue recalled his Pokémon before he entered the room and saw his old friend laying sideways on the bed breathing raggedly. He sat beside him and put a hand on his Pokémon as it stared at him and smiled. "Rat- ra." It said, giving the name it called its master._

_Blue smiled at him, the smile was forced though, it didn't make it to his eyes as he looked at his Pokémon. They both new what was happening, they both knew they had to say goodbye yet neither of them wanted to. Blue ran his hands along his Pokémon scratching it behind the ears like it had always loved. "I remember the first time we met, I promised you that you'd be safe with me, that together we'd make it to the top. I promised you that we'd be Champions, but most of all I promised that I'd never leave you. Blue told his friend fighting to keep the tears from streaming down his face._

"_I promise you that we'll make it to the top, we'll do it for you." He said. "I swear that we'll be the champions of Kanto." He then grinned. "And I promise that you'll get to see it from the best place possible. Arceus takes the best of us and I know you're one of the best god-damned Pokémon to ever live. We'll never forget you, none of us will, to us you'll always be a friend first Pokémon second, and what did I tell you on our journeys? No-one ever forgets their friends no matter what." Blue said as his Raticate finally closed its eyes smiling as it embraced death, it's vitals flat-lining as the tears finally streamed down Blue's face. As he left his words reverberated through his mind._We'll be Champions.

As Blue looked at the tombstone he smiled briefly, they did become Champions, maybe it was only for three days but at least he could say that he got there. At least he got a taste of what it felt like to be at the top, something only hundreds of people had ever achieved. Turning he stared at Red before he tossed him a bouquet of flowers. "Put these on her grave for me." He told him as he left the tower. Red didn't respond he just did what was requested of him, he wandered further down the hall to where her grave was and placed both of their flowers on it. He didn't say anything, he just walked out of the tower as he got ready for his next adventure, the Ever Grande Conference. On the tomb it read:

Green Ketchum

Loving Sister and Friend

Gone but not forgotten by a

Loving mother and brother

R.I.P

1988-2004

(PoV Switch)

It had been five years since Ash had last laid eyes on the City of Viridian, in that time the city itself was exactly the same. Small towns never exactly changed and Viridian was the smallest area in Kanto apart from Pallet Town. This often made people wonder why the eighth gym, arguably the most difficult to obtain a gym badge from was located in this area. Most often pointed to the Indigo Plateau's location as the reason for the gym being there and for the city being built in the first place. What most didn't know though was that Viridian City was the stronghold of the Kanto region. The city wasn't built because of its location to the Plateau, the Plateau was built upon because of its location to the city.

In a world where no-one stayed in the same spot for an indefinite period of time unless they were children or their travelling days were over, how was an area supposed to protect itself? More accurately how could a proverbial goldmine of a city, a city which housed the National Treasury, the Stock Market and Arceus City, the residence of Pope Maximus III, the head of the most powerful religion in the world protect itself? The development of the eighth gym and the placement of the Indigo Plateau had been the most obvious answer when the league had begun over three hundred years ago.

The result? A continuous stream of Trainers with powerful and skilled Pokémon flooding through the city in droves, all kept around the area through the difficulty of the eight gym and then remaining in the area as they waited for the Indigo League Conference an event which took place every four months, just enough time for trainers to hang around but not too soon for the competition to lose its prestige. Three victors each year, three trainers who could challenge the Elite Four, some of the most powerful trainers in the world. Everything in and around the city was powerful. Viridian was easily the most powerful City in the world. But as they say, power corrupts.

Ash and his friends wandered into the newly established Viridian Gym, a sleek styled, modern facility. Everything was black, the only things that prevented the gym from being in total darkness were the lights which hung from the ceiling and the glowing panels on the floor which signified the way the tiles would move when they were stepped on. Ash was led through the visitors entrance to the main stadium so that he did not have to figure out the tile puzzle on his way there. Secretly his friends were relieved, Ash and puzzles, Ash and directions, pretty much anything to do with thinking hard had never really been his thing.

As they took their place in the audience Ash was in the changing rooms alone, wrapped in his thoughts as he stared at the six Pokémon he had elected to take part in the battle. He hadn't wanted to come today, he wasn't afraid, far from it. He just wasn't in the mood for battling at the moment. The emotions swirling within him had begun to gradually take their toll when he had realized, realized he had fallen out of love with something that had consumed his life for the last five years. All it had taken was one order, one attack that had killed him inside, yet he knew it had been the right choice. Sacrifices were always made for the greater good, everyone died for a cause, and Ash still wasn't sure if what he believed in had been the truth, or just a falsified ideal he had convinced himself into believing.

He gradually made his way out onto the stadium, a white floor designed to league specifications yet lacking the different change of environments. The floor itself was made from some form of plastic, hard enough to not impede the movements of Pokémon yet soft enough to not cause additional damage when they fell to the floor. Essentially it was the perfect battle arena. Whoever had taken over the Gym from Giovanni was a high roller with cash to burn, or a powerful individual in the Pokémon world. Either way Ash was interested in meeting him after the battle, the man would be worth getting to know at least.

He stared at the opposite end of the battlefield, standing there was Tobias his Darkrai floating ominously beside him. They didn't say anything, there wasn't anything that needed to be said. The referee went over the rules as the cameras looked down from above, the match had only been arranged two days ago but any match involving a Champion, or the eighth gym usually attracted over 3 million viewers. Pokémon battling was the most watched sporting event in the world, as a result the numerous Media empires of the Pokémon world often had a team of broadcasters or camera crews at each town waiting to relay an exciting battle that would boost the companies numbers. Hearing that the Prince of Pallet and the Sinnoh Champion were having a battle had resulted in the attendance of over 30 news channels and other media personalities attending the battle.

(PoV Switch)

The crowd was massive, thousands of trainers, breeders and civilians had come to attend the battle. As Gary and the group were led to their own private box they were surprised to find that the box was not empty. Leaning up against a pole was a man, he cut a gaunt figure as his pale face shone in the light intensifying his features. He was wearing jeans and a sleeveless shirt whilst a jacket was tied around his waist. On his arm was a tattoo, some dragon type Pokémon that none of the group new about, on the other was a tattoo of a red chain and three orbs of energy which surrounded it. As Dawn stared at it she vague flashes stirred at the back of her mind, as she stared at the tattoo the realized, she had seen it before.

"Uhh, excuse me sir this is a private box." The employee said as he walked towards the man. "I must ask you to leave."

The man turned and acknowledged the group before pulling out a pass from his jeans. "That's perfectly fine, I bought a seat in a private box earlier and this is where I was taken." He replied showing the employee the card.

The employee nodded and turned to the group again. "Everything is in order here, would you like me to take this man or alternatively yourselves to a different area?"

"Doesn't bother me in the slightest, that is if you're ok with staying here as well?" Gary said looking towards the man.

"No I suppose I'll stay, it's often better to watch Pokémon battles with company." The man replied and the attendant left leaving the two parties to stand there eyeing one another.

Gary introduced the group to the man motioning to Paul, Dawn, Brock, May and Max before beginning to sit down and watch the battle which was about to take place. Nervously Max asked. "Uhh, what's your name sir?"

The man stared onto the field and replied. "Chase, Chase Gasnier."

PoV Switch

"This battle will be six-on-six with unlimited substitutions. The trainers shall now reveal their first Pokémon." The referee announced.

Tobias's Darkrai surged forward onto the battlefield as Ash threw his first Pokémon out. Emerging from the Pokeball was a Pokémon that barely anyone in the Kanto region had ever seen before, in fact the last time it had been spotted was over thirty years ago in the championship battle between the reigning champion Samuel Oak and William Donatello, the fifty-fourth champion of the Kanto region. In fact as Samuel Oak watched the battle he was stunned, Ash had never sent him this Pokémon in the entire time he had trained it, in fact Professor Oak had barely known of its presence on Ash's team apart from when he analysed the data on Ash's Pokedex the week after his return to Kanto.

As Professor Oak watched from the stands having just arrived at the facility, Delia Ketchum in tow he remembered back to that day, and how his hopes and dreams had been shattered in a matter of minutes. He'd been a Champion, a victor, un-de-fucking-beatable for seven years, and then he lost. Sure everybody lost a match once in a while, well almost everyone that is. The problem though was that he wasn't everyone and not everyone lost a Championship battle up by four Pokémon to one. He thought that it was over with, that he'd never have to see the creature that plagued his dreams and nightmares for years after he lost his title, yet here it was, that Darkrai was in trouble.

_"And Donatello is down to his last Pokémon! After blitzing the Elite Four, Donatello's last Pokémon is finally ready to be revealed for the first time. Whatever it is I still don't hold much hope for the young challenger who needs to defeat four of Samuel Oak's Pokémon to gain the title." The commentator screamed as the crowd chanted Samuels name over and over again._

_Samuel smirked at the trainer before him, yet something was playing at the back of his mind, the trainer wasn't even scared. Normally he beat his opponents mercilessly, crushing them into submission as he destroyed their hopes and dreams. Yeah he was a dick, but there were worse out there. He could be a murderer, a Pokémon thief, a slave trader, Samuel Oak was a man that trainers despised yet crowds loved, Samuel Oak was the king of Pokémon battling, the greatest that had ever existed and the greatest that would probably ever exist. So why wasn't that trainer in tears, why hadn't he been broken yet? Why didn't he look and feel inferior, why didn't Samuel feel his foot stamping on this man's face like he so often did with every other trainer he faced? Why, no how was this man still going?_

_Donatello grinned as he sent out his last Pokémon, the crowd roared as they took in a creature that had never set foot out of Unova in history, a Pokémon which for the first time in years made Samuel Oak a little nervous. Shrugging he sent out his Arcanine, a Dragon Dance followed by Dragon Claw and his Arcanine was sent back in an instant defeated, his loyal Pidgeot met the same fate the minute it emerged, an Outrage then followed and utter chaos reigned consuming as his last two Pokémon were knocked out in single blows. Samuel Oak recalled his Dragonite, his strongest Pokémon and walked out of the arena in a daze, he never battled again._

"Haxorus go!" Ash commanded as the dragon emerged from the light adopting it's battle stance, one leg slightly behind the other as it reared its head back and unleashed a terrifying roar at the legendary Pokémon. Oak seized up immediately tense at the sight of the fearsome Pokémon, his hands clenched together and the knuckles turned white as his nails dug into his skin. He couldn't feel the pain, all he could feel was the torrent of humiliation and defeat from over thirty years ago hitting him like a torrent of water, battering whatever sorry being happened to be beneath it until they were no more but oblivion.

"Darkrai vs Haxorus, begin!" The referee announced waving his flags and letting the battle commence.

"Darkrai Ice Beam!" Tobias screamed as the Darkness Pokémon brought his hands together and a blue orb of energy began to fill between his hands, he then sent it flying towards the dragon type Pokémon.

"Dodge with dragon dance." Ash ordered.

Haxorus obeyed, beginning to dance as mystical blue flames surrounded the dragon. It continued its movements narrowly dodging the Ice Beam as it continued its routine flawlessly. As the dance finished the Dragon looked stronger than before as the flames entered its body and enhanced its speed and strength.

"Dark Void!"

"Dragon Pulse."

The Darkrai summoned another orb of energy, this time made of pure black energy and sent it barrelling towards Haxorus, Haxorus charged up his own attack and sent the beam straight into the heart of the Dark Void. They met in a collision and the two energies began pushing against it each other in a search for dominance, as the two beams clashed together Ash seized the intiative.

"Quick Haxorus use Dragon Claw!" Ash called over the screaming crowd.

"Close range Ice Beam when he appears Darkrai!" Tobias commanded.

"Gotcha." Ash muttered under his breath. "Take the attack head on and charge up a Brick Break with your other hand, Now Brick Claw!" His Haxorus flipped over the two battling energies using the momentum to barrel down and hit its opponent even harder.

Darkrai unleashed his Ice Beam straight into the chest of Haxorus, usually this was devastating, instead Haxorus didn't even acknowledge the blow other than a brief wince before it raked across the Dark type Pokémons body with a Powerful Dragon Claw attack before following up with a brutal uppercut that sent Darkrai careening towards his trainer. What Haxorus and indeed the crowd had forgotten though were the two attacks that were fighting each other directly behind the Axe Pokémon. Finally reaching a climax the two attacks exploded and Haxorus was sent barrelling to the ground as he was hit by the wave of energy that erupted from the attack. Smoke filling the Arena and blinding the crowd.

As the smoke settled Ash thought about his strategy, his Pokémon had survived the Ice Beam because of the Yache Berry Ash had forced it to wear. As a result it had barely been affected by the Ice Beam, his combo attack though should have beaten the Dark type, or at least severely damaged it. The one thing Ash hadn't anticipated though was the blast from the two attacks, he'd been hoping for a quick get in and get out before the attacks would explode. Haxorus weren't known for a solid defense, they were purely offensive Pokémon. Hits like the one Haxorus had just taken weren't exactly good for any Pokémon.

The cloud settled and Haxorus was standing upright, straight back into its battle stance ready for more. He roared defiantly at the Darkrai, taunting it, urging it to stand up and finish their battle. Slowly the Dark type rose back into the air and gave its own roar, Tobias seized the initiative. "Shadow Sneak followed by Shadow Ball Darkrai!" He ordered as the Dark type melted into the shadows.

"Quick, roll forward then hit it with Dragon Rage." Ash shot back.

Haxorus dove forwards narrowly dodging the Shadow Sneak before turning around carried by the momentum, firing an orb of energy that collided into the Shadow Ball and swallowed it up before continuing it's movements and hitting the Legendary sending him sprawling to the canvas. Haxorus rolled straight back onto his feet and caught itself as he glared at the Dark type. "Come on Darkrai show him your power!" Tobias shouted, willing his Pokémon back into the battle.

The Dark type shifted slightly, slowly and slowly rising into the air ignoring the pain that seeped through its body. Try as it might though it succumbed to its injuries and gave out falling to ground unable to battle. The referee made the call and the crowd screamed, both trainers returned their Pokémon praising their efforts. "I'll use you in a few minutes, this guy's perfect for you." Ash muttered to his Haxorus and sent his Pikachu onto the field as Tobias released his Latios.

From the private box the group commented on the battle. "Ash has got him on the ropes!" Dawn screamed with delight as she waved her pompoms in the air cheering Ash on.

"I wouldn't go that far." Brock cautioned as they stared at the battlefield. "That Latios is a step above and Ash can't afford to make a bad call here."

Gary then spoke up from the back. "I don't know if it's just me seeing this, but does Ash even look interested in the battle? It's like he doesn't even care."

Following his comment they all looked on at their friend, stifling a yawn, a look of absolute boredom, no sadness on his face.

"Since when has Ash been bored of a Pokemon battle?" Max said as the group looked on baffled.

"Pikachu vs Latios, Begin!" The referee announce waving his flags

"Luster Purge!"

"Thunderbolt."

The two Pokémon released their attacks as the second battle began.

"Alright, let's build some momentum. Latios use Dragon Claw!" Tobias shouted as his dragon sped towards Pikachu.

Ash stood there, motionless, waiting for just the right moment. The crowd gasping as Latios drew closer, ready to deliver its killer blow. Fifty feet, forty, thirty, the Latios kept coming. Just as the gap was about to be closed off it happened.

"Pikachu, Thunder Wave."

Pikachu dived to the side, firing the wave of electricity into the spot he'd just been. Latios took it head on and was instantly paralysed. For the first time of the battle the commentator's words came over the gym. "And we join you here where Ash Ketchum has just taken the upper hand with a daring and brilliant move, Paralysing Tobias's Latios. Can the Sinnoh Champion mount a comeback from here?"

Ash called his Pikachu back and went to bring back out his Haxorus. As he did, his hand hovered over the ball, his muscles refusing to grip the object in question. Not out of hesitation, but reluctance, reluctance to keep the battle going. He looked out at the chanting crowd, the millions of lights directed his way as cameras flashed. Capturing both the battlefield, _and_ the emotions of the two trainers who stood upon it. Tobias looked both a mixture of frustration and passion. Frustrated at his inability to gain the upper hand yet passionate in that he was doing something he loved, and finally being challenged at it.

Ash on the other hand was stone cold, emotionless. Frustration, joy, passion, all the emotions one normally felt in a battle weren't there.

"Sir, you have one minute or you forfeit the match." The referee addressed him as the crowd started calling for the action to restart.

Ash nodded and went to put his hand on Haxorus's Poke ball again, but yet again something stopped him. He just couldn't feel it, not anymore. Nerves, excitement, the thrill of walking out to the sound of the crowd. The fear of the unknown, the frustration of a humiliating defeat, the satisfaction of facing an good opponent. All of those emotions were non-existent, there was nothing.

He was empty.

So he did the one thing that no-one would ever suspect Ash Ketchum of doing. With a look at the ref he sighed. "End it." And without a second glance he walked out of the ring, Pikachu following him, as the crowd hurled abuse his way.

**A/N**: I think this was a problem when I first wrote this, is that I never really approached Ash, losing his drive which I actually had as a plot point but never actually broached.

Unfortunately updates aren't ever going to be this rapid, I had these two chapters ready to go is all. Hope you enjoyed it, First time I've ever hit 5k in a chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Whoa an update? Sorry guys, schools been excessive, majors etc; then exams, it's been hell. And then I've had writer's block over this chapter from 500 words for the last month before I pushed through tonight.**

**Chapter 3: A Surprising Reunion**

"**It's only after we've lost everything that we're free to do anything."**

Ash strode past the crowd, ignoring the abuse hurled his way as a puzzled Tobias looked on. Pikachu walked alongside him as he took the final few steps towards the change rooms before slamming the door behind him, embracing the sanctuary of silence that the room provided.

The rooms were soundproofed. This allowed a trainer to prepare his Pokémon and train without the fear of his opponent finding out what they were planning. They had everything a trainer could want, outfitted with a lounge area, a bar, a small training area for sparring. Ash looked around the area and found what he was looking for; he closed the fridge with the bottle of Black Persian fitting comfortably in his hand.

He turned around and almost dropped the bottle as he stared at the girl sitting on the couch. When the hell did she get there?

"I hope you're sharing that between the two of us." She said as she flicked through the television channels. "Nice battle by the way."

Ash grunted in response as he sat down on the couch opposite her, downing the shot glass and pouring himself another. The girl did the same as they watched the remainder of the battle in silence. The battle wasn't exactly pretty to watch, he couldn't help but criticise everything he did wrong. An awful habit he'd fallen into after he lost to _him _all those months ago. When the battle finally finished she looked at him. "He was about to put you on the ropes, did you know that?"

"How so?" He asked genuinely curious as she picked up the remote.

She rewound the screen and paused at the moment before Ash resigned. Tobias had a barely perceptible smirk on his face as he held a ball in his hand ready to recall his Latios. Ash gritted his teeth, if he'd been able to last another ten minutes then he would have known at least three Pokemon that he had.

"Well, he didn't know I was sending Haxorus back into the game." He replied and she raised an eyebrow.

"Anyone who even has an inkling of details about Unova knows you were." She countered as she drained another glass. Her second or third, they weren't exactly keeping count but the bottle was slowly starting to empty.

"I will admit, it was one of my trademarks, no bastard could counter it though; except for you." He complimented as Pikachu ran up and perched himself on his shoulder.

The girls face paled slightly but she quickly hid the change by downing another shot, she then looked at the duo. "Still doing that?" She asked light-heartedly as Ash threw the now empty bottle into the trash before bringing over a glass of water and another bottle, trying to ease the light-headedness that would swiftly be following.

"For as long as I want to." He replied as Pikachu then leapt off and ran elsewhere, exploring the facility.

The girl nodded as they then sat in silence. Ash with his eyes closed, head tilted towards the ceiling.

"Is it getting any easier?" She asked him.

"Nope, probably never will." He replied, not even bothering to look back.

"At least tell me you've slept in the past week."

"Never more than an hour, after that it comes straight back."

"And that explains why you look like shit." She concluded with a smirk.

"Then what's your excuse?" He shot back with his own grin.

A look of false indignation crossed her face, for a second before they both started laughing, bringing back memories of their time in Undella.

"Arceus I've missed you, what has it been two months?"

"Something like that, I got back last week."

"So where'd you go in-between?"

He paused for a second at that question; she wouldn't want to know the real the real answer. She had been the one who told him not to go and do what he did in the first place. Back then though, he felt he had to, and even though he realized how foolish he'd been as he looked back. He would've hated himself even more if he hadn't at least tried.

Yet she had been right, there hadn't been a way, it had just caused him even more pain than before. He'd always remained hopeful, and when that hope was extinguished, the anguish he had felt had only increased a thousandfold.

"You know where I was going, all seventy places that I found." He replied. "Turns out none of them worked, I suppose you knew that already?"

She nodded. "You can't cheat him, no matter how hard you try huh?" She said as she poured them another glass, probably the final one of the day. She swirled the liquid around before she held it out to him. "To death."

Ash just hit the glasses together. "So should I tell mum we have another guest at the Ketchum Residence?"

XxX

Gary had a few flaws, some of which he wasn't proud of, others which he felt worked well with his personality. His disdain for tardiness was one of those many traits he was quite proud of, and as he waited for Ash to exit the gym, annoyance quickly began to build up, minute by minute as his rival seemingly refused to exit the facility. Whilst the others had gone home to set up what Cilan had referred to as an 'intervention', which in hindsight sounded more like an interrogation. Gary, Paul, Professor Oak and Misty had decided to wait for their friend to leave and venture home with him.

Professor Oak in particular felt as though he needed to have words with the boy. His memories of Haxorus in the battle he had just fought, more than reminding him of his previous humiliation all those years ago. _Did he learn those techniques from him?_ Oak asked himself as he sat on the bench outside and contemplated that idea. _But William vanished years ago, no-one knew where he went, he just disappeared into thin air…_ Resolving to ask his protégé the question later he sat there and waited, memories of the battle pouring through his head. It had taken years to get them out of his mind, the humiliation he experienced.

Samuel Oak had been a man built on his pride, built on arrogance, constantly stroking his own ego as he dismantled his opponents. He remembered seeing himself in Gary at the start of his journey, he remembered seeing his grandson as a Champion, as the conqueror of the Pokemon League who would vanquish all who came before him. He'd never told Gary this though; he had a hard enough time living up to his grandfather's name without having added pressure from his grandfather himself.

No Samuel had been content to let Gary make his own journey, decide his own path, and he had watched with pride as he grew up, becoming the boy he saw today.

Ash on the other hand, had seemingly turned into a different beast entirely. Gone was the immaturity, he just seemed to have gained a whole new level of understanding in the months between the two individuals meeting one another. Unova had done something to him, that none of the other regions had been capable of, and he didn't know what. Nor did he know if the change was for the better, or for the worse. The Ash he had known had been one of his closest friends, a boy who gave everything for the sake of others, costing him any hope of success he would ever achieve.

The Ash he knew was never going to win the Pokemon League, it had been a tragic tale, but it was the truth. He was held back, not by others, but by himself. This Ash though, made Oak tremble, and he didn't know why.

_What's taking him so damned long_? Misty thought angrily, her hands curling around the trusty mallet in her hands, ready to beat some sense into Ash Ketchum whether he liked it or not. No-one, walked away from a Pokemon battle, it was the most cowardly thing on the face of the planet. Nor did one walk away when they were _winning_ like what the fuck was in that boy's head? Whatever had happened to him, Misty didn't like it, and while she'd put to bed the hope of them ever having a relationship with one another. It didn't remove the concern or pent-up frustration she felt towards the boy who had replaced the idiot she'd loved for all those years until reality struck.

Paul rounded up the group; he looked up at the Gym wondering why Ash was taking so long, taking up the time by texting his brother on his phone

_Reggie: How'd the battle go? _

_Paul: He quit half-way through no idea why though, and the bastard hasn't left the damn gym yet, almost been half-an-hour _

_Reggie: No girlfriend holding him up? _

_Paul: The day Ash gets a girl-friend is the day I send you a ten thousand dollars. _

Paul smirked at his own joke, Ash with a girlfriend was about as probable as seeing a Magikarp on a restaurant menu, or on land for that matter.

So when Ash walked out with a girl. Paul quickly put his phone away, the less Reggie knew, the better.

Before Ash could even mutter a word however he was forced to dodge the mallet wielding Misty who uttered a string of curse-words at the raven haired trainer. "How dare you quit a Pokemon match! The only thing you should be feeling right now is shame you absolute moron!" She yelled at him pointing the weapon in her hands at him, whilst he stared impassively waiting for her to finish he speech.

The only thing either of the Oaks or Paul heard Ash mutter was. "Damn girls lucky I didn't kill her." Which thankfully for them, Misty failed to notice in the midst of her verbal tirade. Ash turned to Gary and asked. "You guys got room for a guest? Our house is pretty packed as is."

Gary looked the girl over before he pulled out his phone and rang his sister waiting for a reply. A few seconds of mutterings and retorts between the two siblings which no-one could identify was ended by Gary hanging up on his sister with an exasperated look on his face.

"Yeah, I think so, just be ready for Daisy when we get back, you know what she's like."

Ash nodded. "Thanks." He then gestured to the girl next to him. "Sorry about that guys, this is Caitlin, she's a friend I made in Unova." Introducing the blonde haired girl to the people that were present.

A brief muttering of 'hello's and 'sup?'s led to the eventual decision for the group to head off to Pallet before nightfall, hoping to make the journey within the next thirty minutes or so. As Ash made sure he had all his things packed he heard Paul come up behind him.

"Isn't there a spare room in your house Ash?" He inquired as they walked out of the city. "Like why subject yourself to _Daisy_?" Paul asked shuddering at the thoughts of Gary's sister.

Ash looked at him. "I'd rather put up with Daisy's comments than be interrogated by mum at this stage, if you know what I mean." Ash muttered back with a wink, and Paul felt the wallet in his pocket seemingly start to weigh several pounds less.

Ash looked on ahead as Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder, he looked out at the route he was about to take and looked upwards before leaving the city. And as he did so he saw the faintest smidge of black in the otherwise, white, cloud filled sky. His expression darkened for an instant as a memory flooded through his mind.

"_Get out of there! Get out!" _

"_Reshiram! Finish this! Finish both of them! Incinerate!" _

Ash was shocked out of his reverie by Caitlin as she shook his shoulder and gestured to the open road. Of which Pallet lay ahead. He twisted his cap around and set off, because at the end of the day, home was where the heart is, and it would always be one of the few places he wanted to go, no matter how he was feeling.

XxX

Lance looked out beyond the Indigo Plateau from his office, gazing at the scenery below him as Pikachu ran through the grass, avoiding the rampaging Snorlax which they had jolted awake moments earlier. A smile came to his as he watched them run away from the slow Pokemon which only roared with fury, before returning to its spot and resting as though it had never been disturbed. If only he could do that? If only he could simply roll over and sleep, while the world solved its own problems. Unfortunately that would never happen, no matter how much he wished it would, all he could do was sit here and train his Pokemon, whilst waiting for a challenger to arrive or a mission which required his attention.

The G-men and The Pokemon League, were the only two things that occupied the world of Lance, Champion of Johto and Kanto. As such he wasn't much of a sociable man, the only time he ever got off during the year was the Christmas break, where seeing as he didn't have family was either spent with the Stones, Wallace, or Cynthia. The only real friends he had being the champions of each region, the reason for that of course was due to the fact he had to keep in contact with the Champions of each region and while Steven had given up the title, he served as the second-in-command of their forces, and as such played a huge role in how the G-men were run.

He picked up the file again and re-read it, unsure of what to believe. The data entailed, only made him want to keep reading no matter how tragic the tale ended, the only thing he was able to tell himself was that the tale wasn't over yet, and as such maybe there could be a happy ending for the boy who filled the contents of the pages within.

_Ash Ketchum should be proud. _Lance thought as he gazed at the size of the thing alone, most prospective recruits, even the files they had on Cynthia and Wallace were roughly 6 pages. Ash seemingly had a whole novel dedicated to his exploits, and he was only sixteen.

So the question wasn't whether he was qualified enough but whether Lance would be able to recruit him before he left for Unova again. Or the tournament that was taking place in the next few weeks.

_Name: Ash Ketchum _

_Age: 16 _

_Gender Male _

Lance skipped down the general information to what he was especially concerned about.

_Recruitment: Seemingly not interested after events that transpired in Unova, a potential for revenge/closure may be enough to convert him to the cause. _

_Recommendation: Currently displays serious mental issues, with which he has created coping mechanisms to survive. At this time negative, however if he can curb his destructive tendencies and overcome his grief and trauma he would become a powerful individual to add to our cause. If efforts to recruit him are taken then use of a variety of influences such as Alder or Cynthia would be highly recommended due to their personal connection with the individual. _

Lance remembered the conversations he had had with the two of them. Cynthia was currently in training but was more than willing to make the trip to Pallet and chat with him personally. Alder on the other hand had far more interesting information to offer him, on contemplation of their conversation. Being the last Champion to actively watch over Unova, he had monitored Ash's progress carefully on behalf of Lance who had been considering approaching Ash for the last three years, since the events that had transpired in Hoenn. As such he knew Ash better than everyone and had contributed to over half of the report himself.

Most interestingly was his belief that if anyone would be able to convince Ash of anything it would be Caitlin, the two of them having become particularly close after Ash's escape to Undella Bay after the events that had transpired in the Colosseum, Unova's legendary stadium, which was still being rebuilt from the ground up following the last battle to take place their, a battle which had been miraculous since none of the crowd died as the facility was reduced to rubble.

He had only watched the battle once, but once had been more than enough, he needed Ash Ketchum to join the G-men, because if he did then they'd be capable of anything.

The Hero of Unova and the King of the Dragons, alone they were good. Together they'd be unbeatable.

He rang his secretary and heard the voice chime through. "Yes sir?"

"Macy, can you cancel any appointments I have for tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow was free anyway, sir it's the day after in which you have to meet the Council."

"Excellent, if anyone feels like reaching me, I'll be in Pallet Town, can you make that clear?"

"No problem sir, would you like me to arrange transportation?"

Lance looked at his belt and the Dragonite that sat closest to his right hand. "No I think I'll be fine in that regard." He replied as he hung up on the lady and looked at the picture of Ash Ketchum once more.

_What am I going to be in for? _He wondered as he closed the document and closed his eyes, ready for the journey he'd be undertaking tomorrow.

**A/N: I'm not happy with this chapter tbh but I felt I had to put it up, expect much better quality in the future, I've already started #4, thanks to all those who have favorited so far, not giving up on this one!**


	4. Chapter 4

**So sup guys, this is chapter 4 and hopefully a step in the right direction, as of this one's completion I'm going to be replacing Chapter 3 before I move on to five and remove the complete eyesore that it indeed was. Thanks for the support thus far**

"_It's hard to wait around for something you know might never happen; but its harder to give up when you know its everything you want."_

Chapter 4: An Unexpected Offer

Ash woke up, a sheen of sweat covering his face as he looked outside. It was pitch black, the world still plunged into the darkness that surrounded it. He looked at the clock on his bedside table, forty minutes, that was all he had managed and he didn't even want to try for more. He quickly opened the window to his room and jumped down onto the grass below, breaking his fall with a roll. He looked at the two houses that housed his friends for the briefest of moments before continuing on his way to the spot where his journey had started. The river where he and Gary had fought over the decrepit poke-ball he wore on his necklace.

He had never got rid of it; it had served as a reminder throughout Unova, that he could accomplish anything if he didn't quit. When the nights had gotten cold, and he swore his fingers would fall off. When he fought his way through the hive of Durant, as they tried to add another victim to their nest, and supply their queen with even more food. He remembered as they ran from the swarm, whilst his Charizard and Emboar blasted flamethrowers at the ants scorching all in their wake. It had been terrifying, but as he'd find out in the days afterwards, he hadn't even scraped the true feeling of horror. No-one had, no-one could understand what happened to him, no matter how much Alder tried to sympathize with him.

The river which he sat beside added to the experience of the place that he sat. It was eerie, it was quiet, it was peaceful. It was everything he'd been looking for, for the last few days. He'd just wanted a quiet place to get away from it all, no people, just him, his Pokemon and his thoughts.

For a man could only vanquish his demons alone, the only thing his loved ones could do was offer support as he tried. And Ash would never accept their support, it just wasn't the way things worked.

His whole journey had been him sacrificing everything for everyone else, no-one had ever lifted a damn finger for him, and that was how he wanted it to be. People who got in the way ended up hurt, it was why he had left Iris and Cilan behind after he first lost to N. It wasn't because he lost, but because he knew that if they came along, they'd end up dead. A wannabee Dragon Master and a Pokemon Connoisseur wouldn't have lived through half the things he went through. Hell he wasn't even sure how he survived through the half the things he had, Arceus had been smiling down upon him, until the moment that mattered most at least.

So here he was, in the middle of nowhere with his Pokémon in tow as he started to train the new Pokémon he had regenerated using Oak's fossil machine, the Pokémon he had received were a Kabuto, an Archen and a Tirtouga. The three Pokémon weren't shy, or timid, not intimidated by the powerful pokemon in-front of them at all. Then again Ash hadn't expected them to be, his conversation with Gary about his Aerodactyl and the fossil Pokémon he had met had resulted in his awareness of their nature and the way they would act around his team. Even the way they would react around people in general.

You see, the fossil Pokémon were born and bred in a different time, the fossil Pokémon had been found to pre-date humanity. As a result, the way they acted represented how the Pokémon world had been at the time. As Gary had told him, fossil Pokémon were almost fearless. They weren't ferocious or violent, in any sense of the word. What they were though was strong, both mentally and physically. They didn't try to fight individuals but they weren't afraid of a fight. The Pokémon world at the time of their existence seemed to relay the message that no Pokémon went looking for a battle, but they all knew how to if one was to eventuate.

By attempting to breed the Aerodactyl at the Sinnoh ranch, the researchers had discovered that the Pokémon could get extremely violent with each other during mating season. The male Pokémon fought each other to win the favour of whichever female they wanted, the strongest Pokémon was the most respected, whichever Pokémon was the strongest got whatever or whoever he wanted. The scientists had made the animals seem like savages in their report, that society should be grateful that they had evolved from their primitive ancestors. The truth was though, society hadn't changed, what had changed was what people wanted. The strong get everything; the weak do the best with what they have. Society had always been that way, society would never change, change was impossible.

Society was stupid. And the only way one could change society was to destroy it completely. And Ash was never anything but ambitious.

He looked up at the night sky, obscured by clouds as he pondered whether it would rain or not, and whether it would be wiser of him to return home in case the storm began. He eventually rejected the notion as he began to work with the new Pokémon, learning the depths of their skills and abilities. Kabuto possessed an iron-like defense which was seemingly impossible for Gible to break through, as the dragon type almost broke a tooth on the shell-like Pokémon when he decided to use his trademark Bite attack. Ash sat on the grass, not giving any of his Pokémon orders as the other two he brought along for the fossil types set about their work.

Archen was currently battling his Bayleef as the grass type unleashed a torrent of leaves at the prehistoric pokemon who swooped through them before delivering a sharp peck attack. The flying type looked decent, if only it didn't have such a dreadful ability. Practically giving up the moment it got tired, if Ash could find a way to keep it energised, then he'd be more than able to use him in his line-up. He wouldn't be using him _now _of course, but maybe in a few years' time, he was a Unova Pokémon and strong ones could always come in handy, especially given the lack of experience most opponents would have with them.

As Tirtouga ditched the battle it was currently having with his Pikachu by diving through the water and avoiding the electric mouse's attacks, he let his mind wander to the conversation that had taken place when he got home. He had handled it as well as he thought was possible at the time, but now there were a few small slivers of doubt entering his mind. Doubt was a new feeling for him, gone were the days where it had been second nature, if he'd ever stopped to doubt his choices at any time over the last year he probably wouldn't be here today.

Those choices had led to many things, many regrets, but if he could ever go back and do it again he'd do it the exact way he did, or he'd go back and make sure he never stepped foot into Unova.

XxX

He had been sitting in the waiting room for the last thirty minutes. Whilst this would have been normal for most people, he wasn't at the doctors. Nor was he a normal person for that matter, it wasn't often that Ghetsis, the leader of Team Plasma was willing to sit in a room for anyone. He reclined in the chair, trying to put all thoughts of anger and frustration from his mind. He couldn't understand how he could be here right now. Where did it all go wrong? They'd had a goal, an ideal he had hid behind whilst his son did all the work. The pitiful excuse for a son N was anyway.

He had groomed the child for over fourteen years, finding him as a two year old in VIrbank Forest, a child who could understand Pokémon far greater than any human before him. The moment he had laid eyes on him the gears had been turning. He could create the Hero of Unova, and rule the region with an iron fist behind his son. It had created a difficult problem, creating a criminal organisation and ensuring that N was completely oblivious to it. For what hero had ever been a criminal at the same time?

Thankfully for all of N Harmonius's abilities, hindsight wasn't one which he used effectively, and that lack was what Ghetsis had taken advantage of.

He had created both a hero and a criminal organisation at exactly the same time, and a mission that would have left all the power in the world to both him and the Seven Sages. It had been perfect, using the Hero of Unova to make all trainers except Plasma release their Pokémon. Here he would sit at the throne of a defenceless kingdom, completely unopposed. For those who rose up and tried to fight back would be removed just as quickly. It reminded him of the times when humans and Pokémon had fought against each other. Wars which had raged hundreds of years ago, and had not ended well for humanity.

He didn't know where all of the problems had originated from, but somehow every aspect of the mission crumbled. Operations in Chargestone Cave had been ended just as they'd begun, their search for the Black Stone and removal of all who opposed N and his champion was challenged by one trainer who was more efficient than the hundreds they possessed, or infinitely more lucky. Drayden, the bastard that he was had found the stone in Nacrene City Museum of all places, where they'd stolen the dinosaur skeleton not even eight months beforehand, when the search for the stone had already begun.

The Triad was sent, and they came back in body-bags, no-one knew how though, only that a teenage boy and an old man had faced up to them and prevented the Black Stone from sitting in his pocket, where he had needed it to belong.

Then three months later his son ascended to the throne, their ambition for power and _liberation_ achieved. Only for a boy to come stumbling out of Victory road three minutes after the battle was over. He had become the third person in the history of Unova to ever do so, and the first in forty years.

Victory Road was the stronghold of the League, the final defence, in the entire history of the Pokémon League only thirty people had successfully gotten through it. Thirty people in over five hundred years, all of them became the Champion, and all of them were memorable. Conquering Victory Road was as great an achievement as winning the League itself. At the end of the road there was a wall in which one would carve their name to be remembered for history.

Passing through the road was the ultimate symbol, a symbol of strength, wisdom, tenacity and hope. Passing through Victory Road meant the victor had the right to challenge the Elite Four, even when all challengers had been closed off. Such was the power a trainer had if they made it through Victory Road.

It had been at that moment Ghetsis finally knew who had given him so much trouble over the past year, and whilst he was slightly worried he quickly planned the newest targets ever so quick demise. Whilst the boy recovered in the hospital overnight he sent some of his best agents in to remove the threat his operation was under, only for the Elite Four to repel their attacks until the boy had woken up. Then the Pokémon League Challenge begun and any step Ghetsis could take was stripped away from him completely. Force to stand on the sidelines and watch as the work he had undertaken was destroyed in one battle.

It was strange really, how one man could do so much. How one person could stand up to hundreds and still succeed in the face of overwhelming odds. The question Ghetsis always asked himself wasn't _"What could I have done better?"_ But always _"What could I have done to make sure that kid never got involved?" _ Maybe forcing N to take the Victory Road Challenge, what would have been possible with the Pokémon he possessed and the combined resources of Team Plasma. Then maybe they would have never met, for the only person that drove their adversary to such levels was N himself.

N had moved ahead every step of the way and forced Ash Ketchum to catch up, and ultimately be better. It was only the point where Ash surpassed N that the trainer had realized his mistake, and it was at that moment that N met his demise.

So here he was, his mission in tatters, his army almost half of what it was before as those who had followed his son left. In a boat which had sailed to Kanto waiting for his return, on the run from the G-Men yet sitting defenceless in the one place where the G-men were most prevalent. The last place Ghetsis wanted to be was indeed the one place he was. Because the only way to gain his army back, to take over the world and rule it with an iron fist was to join him. It was why he was seated here in this waiting room, enduring whatever test that the man was throwing at him.

He waited, determined to outlast his quickly growing frustration. Ten minutes, twenty minutes, half an hour, he stayed there. Until finally he saw an individual walk out of the room, a young girl, no more than fifteen or sixteen years old. His daughter perhaps? An agent? Ghetsis wasn't sure, and as she made her way down the hallway, not even so much as looking in her direction he came face to face with the man he had come all this way to meet. Nerves, hatred, a tingle of jealousy all hit him at exactly the same time as he met the man's intimidating gaze.

Giovanni Viridian smirked at the man, knowing exactly why he was here. With a nod towards the door, Ghetsis entered and he felt it close behind them. "So Ghetsis… I believe you want to do business?" Giovanni asked the man as he gestured to the seat. "It would be my pleasure."

XxX

Ash made his way back to the town after an arduous training session, more than pleased with the way the fossil Pokémon had performed through their testing. Some of them were shaping up to be important members of his squad in the future, with Tirtouga a fair chance of competing if he was to fight on a water field. In twenty minutes Pikachu hadn't landed a blow on the turtle Pokémon courtesy of his Shell Smash ability, giving the water type unprecedented speed. He had effectively run rings around the electric type, dodging almost point blank attacks whilst blasting him with Water Gun attacks, leaving the Electric type soaked, and furious.

It hadn't seemed like a real battle, Tirtouga turning out to be extremely different from the other Pokémon's serious demeanours. If Ash was reminded of anyone it would have to be his Squirtle and Emboar, two Pokémon of his who took almost nothing seriously.

Speaking of his Emboar he walked over to Oak's lab, walking to the back of the facility and finding the ranch where his Pokémon were housed. He passed by both Gary's and Pauls, alongside a few other trainers Pokémon as well. He entered the facility and bypassed a collection of his still sleeping Pokémon eventually finding the Fire type in the forest of all places attempting to practice with Sceptile. The grass type had disappeared into the bushes and proceeded to bomb the fire Pokémon with a series of Bullet Seeds from different locations whilst Krookodile looked on and seemingly hurled either encouragement or abuse at the fire types direction.

Seeing their trainer the three Pokémon stopped their activity and obediently hobbled over. Ash greeted them all and then looked at the fire type in particular taking note over how his wound was healing. Emboar who noticed his trainers concern grinned as he proceeded to do a series of backflips and one armed push-ups on the previously injured arm. Desperate to show his trainer that he was fully healed and more than able to re-join his party if Ash saw fit. Ash grinned at the site relieved, he originally had thought Emboars injury may have ruined his battling career, and he had only done his Pokémon more harm by letting Emboar battle on.

But he was fine, it may have been a while but he was healed, and that was perhaps the one thing Ash had wanted his Pokémon to be, regardless of whether he could battle again or not. The fact he would be able to though, was another positive in itself. Another abandoned Pokémon he had taken on board as he traversed Unova, picking up the pieces that Team Plasma left behind and turning them into some of the most powerful Pokémon he possessed. He had now reached the point where he wasn't even sure which Pokémon were his best and which weren't, an issue further compounded by his inability to command them all at the same time.

Looking at Emboar and Krookodile, he realized he had a talent for raising Pokémon. Not the standard ones where they fought and either won or lost. No, he had a talent for the 'different' ones that many a trainer had given up on or left behind to die. Charizard, Emboar, Haxorus, hell even the way Paul had treated Infernape still left Ash seething with rage on the rare occasion. All of his Pokémon were different, and that was what he probably liked most about each of them. He remembered his ventures through the regions where he found those Pokémon only obsessed with winning and training. As much as he had tried to help them he just couldn't.

He hadn't realized why until later on in his travels, that he was blessed with a mixture of some of the most happy, wild and arrogant Pokémon he had ever met. He was ninety per cent certain that if he locked Krookodile, Charizard, Sceptile and Haxorus into the same room, they'd either spend the whole day bragging about battles they had won, or rip the room to shreds as they tried to see who was stronger. Infernape and Buizel whilst quietly confident would probably sit around and watch, stopping to train for a while. Snorlax would most likely take a walk and then fall asleep just as quickly as he woke up.

All were completely different Pokémon, and all were just as powerful as each other.

"Oi Ashy-boy!" Shouted Gary as he strolled towards him.

That was one thing about Gary Ash had always hated, he never ran. He always walked around as though everything would just wait for him, and as they had grown up it had. Yet when they had started their journey, it was why Ash always suspected he would quit first. Part of him still suspected Gary had known that as well, and why he had jumped at the chance to be a researcher instead.

It didn't mean Gary hadn't been a talented trainer, oh god no. Gary had been one of his toughest rivals and if he hadn't been knocked out by that trainer in Kanto when they started off, he would have won the Indigo League with ease. Ash had started slow, Gary had burst onto the scene like a supernova and burnt out just as quickly. He still trained his Pokémon though, and he'd even caught a fair few new ones, he'd back him to do well in any region and was more than willing to invite him to Unova for the Vertress Conference. It was just approaching the subject matter that seemed to be the question.

Despite Gary's refusal to battle again, Ash could still see that spark in both his and his Pokémon's eyes. He knew the look, because he could see it in anyone that battled.

"So these are two more of the Unova bunch huh?" He said as he inspected the fire and ground types. Krookodile bared his teeth at the stranger who was suddenly looking at him like a piece of meat. "God I'd like to get some data on these two, think I can borrow them for a while?"

Ash smiled for a second as an idea played into his mind. "If you can beat me in a one on one battle, then they're all yours."

Gary frowned for a second. "You know I don't battle anymore Ash." He said absent-mindedly reaching for the balls on his belt, his hand eventually clutching the one on the far left.

"Hell what will one battle do? It'll be fun." Ash shot back as he grabbed one. "Who will you use?"

Gary stared at him for a minute, before he finally relented. "You're on, Aerodactyl you're up." He said as he threw the fossil Pokémon onto the field."

He looked at the two Pokémon Gary had wanted to look at, Emboar wouldn't go well in this battle, but Krookodile may have a few tricks up his sleeve. "Krookodile, have some fun." He told the ground type before turning to Gary. "Just don't hit his glasses, he hates that."

"Don't quit. A lot of people hate that to." Gary hit back straight away before realizing what he said.

As he went to apologize Ash seized the initiative, disregarding what his friend had said. "Krookodile, Crunch!"

The Pokémon bounded towards the flying Pokémon with a speed which seemed like lightning for a Pokémon his size, opening his jaws which began to glow black with the dark energy, he leapt for the Aerodactyl, already going for the kill.

"Dodge and hit him with Aerial Ace!"

"Take the hit and grab on!"

The flying type avoided Krookodile's attack, disappearing in an instant with its speed before turning around and launching itself at his enemy. Krookodile managed to get back up before the attack hit and braced himself just in time. He grabbed onto the flying types tail as he was struck right in the chest by a vicious attack which would have knocked the breath out of most Pokémon. Keeping his composure he kept a vice-like grip on his opponent as Ash looked at the situation before yelling out. "Batter up!"

"What?!" Gary shouted as he thought of what the attack could mean, thinking it may be a new technique in Unova.

Krookodile grinned as his tail lit into a blue aura, letting the flying type go as he whirled around to deliver a brutal Dragon Tail attack.

"Detect!"

Time seemed to slow down for the Aerodactyl as he ducked under the tail which swung just above him, before taking off and drifting upwards with the air currents to quickly loom over the battle-field. Ash pursed his lips at the sudden move, not expecting the Aerodactyl to be as quick as he was; Gary had raised it quite well. He was going to have to re-think his strategy if he wanted to end this battle quickly. Of course the aim wasn't to end it quickly at all, he was trying to see if Gary still had the edge he had before. Or if the four years he'd spent away from the scene had ruined him.

"Let's go on the offensive!" Gary yelled to his Pokémon. "Sky Attack!"

As the Aerodactyl charged his move, Ash muttered to his Krookodile. "Hone Claws."

The Pokémon nodded as his claws lengthened by about another five centimetres, making them look even more threatening than before. The Dark Ground Hybrid smirked at the development as Aerodactly came roaring down cloaked in a greyish aura. Ash barked out his new order. "Stone Edge, use them as a shield."

Krookodile grunted as the stones began to outline his body, as he formed them into a wall in front of him. It did little though as Aerodactly barrelled through the shield slamming into Ash's Pokémon for the second time that day, pissing both the Ash and his Pokémon off majorly. Krookodile particularly pissed off at Emboar and Sceptile who both seemed to be laughing at the one sided battle. He growled at the two before turning to Ash and with a raised eyebrow, as if asking his trainer if he was to command him better. Ash just stared back and gave an almost imperceptible wink which Krookodile saw, and grinned.

"Sky Attack again!" Gary called out, as his Aerodactyl swooped up one more time. Cloaking himself in the greyish aura again.

"Hone Claws, one more time." Ash said to his Pokémon and Gary caught the order.

_What's that?_ He wondered as he racked his brains trying to remember. _It's not like Ash to use anything other than double team or agility, so it'll probably be boosting his speed… Fuck I'm clueless. _

"Let's go, take him down!" Gary shouted.

The Aerodactyl grinned at the order, massively enjoying the battle it had had so far against the powerful Pokémon it was facing. This move wouldn't knock him out, hell the Pokémon wasn't even breathing heavily yet which said something as to its stamina. But with a bit of luck then hopefully this attack would go a long way to finishing off his opponent for good. That was when he heard his opponent's next order.

"Outrage!"

The Pokémon flew down only to be met by a furious Krookodile as the Dark type grabbed its tail and swung him into the ground, before unloading a barrage of punches on the Flying Pokémon's body, not letting up until it had completely exhausted itself and Aerodactyl slowly rose to his feet.

"We're going to have to go for it now buddy, have you got anything left?" Gary asked his Pokémon as it turned around and gave him a salute of all things with its right wing.

"Good, give him a Giga Impact, all you've got."

"Dragon Tail before he charges, finish it."

Just as quickly as Aerodactyl began to charge his attack he was met with a vicious tail which sent him flying five feet in the other direction. Instead of letting himself be recalled though he then turned to his rivals in Emboar and Sceptile giving them the bird before Ash recalled him. "Didn't think he would be that… Brutal." Ash muttered as he walked over the unconscious Flying type. "We'll go and get him checked out at the Lab."

Gary nodded, not trusting himself to say anything. Shocked at the state his Pokémon had ended up in as a result of the last attack. "How did he get over the confusion?" He eventually asked as they started walking back.

"Persim Berry."

"Honestly didn't think you would even know what those are." He said with a weak chuckle. "When did you get that smart?"

"Probably after the Vetress Conference, never really started to go for it til after that."

"What happened?" Gary asked, stunned by Ash's first mention of Unova since his return.

"5-1 up in the final and I lost."

"Ouch." Was all Gary say about that predicament. "Was the trainer any good?"

"He was Champion for a while, but he had one major weakness." Ash replied as the building came into sight.

"What was that?"

"Besides his legendary, the rest of his Pokémon couldn't battle for shit."

The walk then fell into silence for a minute before Ash spoke up. "So did you enjoy it?"

"Eh, it was fun, until that oversized lizard started to battle. Were you testing me?"

Ash looked at him. "Now why would I do that? We fought each other for almost three years; I don't really need to test you." Maintaining his cool demeanour despite Gary's correct guess.

"Then why'd you pull your punches early on?" Gary asked genuinely curious as to why his best friend had seen the need to test his battling skills.

"Ok… maybe it was a little test." Ash conceded as they opened the door. "Feel like competing next month?" He asked casually as he held it open for his friend

"I've been retired for three years Ash, kinda hard to qualify." Gary answered, speaking in a slower voice, as though Ash couldn't grasp the concept.

"Not when I can hand-pick two trainers to go into the qualifiers." Ash stated as they walked into the lab.

The shock on Gary's face sat there for a few moments as he considered the ramifications of the offer. A chance to compete against the world's best at the cost of pushing his diploma back by a year at least. Any sane person would immediately reject the offer. For one it was ludicrous. Two, he hadn't battle in three years competitively. And three, he didn't even know if half his Pokémon were in battling condition, let alone where his cheerleaders had wandered off to following his retirement.

Ash looked at him. "Paul at least nutted up and asked me straight away, hell I've never seen the man beg but it looked like he was about to get on his hands and knees. Besides what type of idiot doesn't want to a 'Pokémon Master?' Ash asked, Gary slightly perturbed by the sarcastic tone Ash used on the last two words of the sentence. It wasn't everyday a man ripped into his own dream, and watching Ash Ketchum do it, was the last thing Gary had ever expected the man to do. Ash looked at him once more. "Think about it." Before he left the lab and Gary started to treat his Pokémon, hoping the injuries weren't too bad.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: So I got this idea the other day, and I think it's pretty awesome. So instead of studying, I decided to take a quick break and get this chapter out so I can start to form the foundation of it and we'll see if you guys like it. Enjoy as you can tell the notice has been removed cause I got this up, any chapter from now should be expected around November on-wards :)

Chapter 5: Climbing the Pedestal

"_You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday you'll join us. And the world will live as one."_

_Two weeks_. Ash thought as he made his way through the small town after his little heart to heart with Gary. Two weeks until the Ever Grande Tournament started, and then he'd be able to beat Tobias, he just had to get there first. He shuddered at the thought of all the battles he'd have to try and endure. The pool matches, the knock-out rounds before winning the title and getting another shot at the man he had faced not even two days ago. What other legendaries did the mysterious trainer possess? And how would he go about using them? Questions which Ash often fought about, but the same problem kept hitting him.

How could he get there, if he couldn't be bothered battling anymore?

Dawn and May were currently in front of him, viewing the wares at a few of the small stores the town currently possessed. Ash on the other hand had Emboar with him as they both munched on a Casteliacone, thankful he had been able to convince the restaurant manager to import his favourite food.

He and Emboar watched as Krookodile wandered through the shopping area being looked at by awestruck children who hadn't even known of the existence of the crocodile or the fire type for that matter until they had come wandering into the area. What might have also stood out was that Emboar currently had a hat on, whilst Krookodile shot annoyed glances through at Ash through his sunnies when a four year old child grabbed his tail.

Ash just chuckled at the sight, as he took a drink from the bottle of water he had on the table and then proceeded to finish his ice cream. He remembered when he had crawled through the Castelia City Sewers just to catch an Eevee. The first thing he and his entire team had done when they got out was head straight to the store, Winter be damned and bought their favourite food. Of course he'd also had to put down a Team Plasma plot at the same time with some kid called Hugo. He sometimes wondered what happened to that kid. Him and his rants about power and how he needed more of it, the kid had reminded him of the Paul almost instantly.

Speaking of the purple haired trainer he currently sat next to Ash, taking a drink from whatever he had ordered, some Sangria thing the bartender had been pleasantly surprised to hear Paul order. Taking a quick look at it, it didn't look too bad, probably a drink he had been brought up on or something since it seemed popular amongst Sinnohans. Cynthia seemed to drink it by the bucketful from what he could remember of their encounters in Sinnoh.

"Seriously, this stuff takes like shit. Why do you order it?" A voice spoke up as he watched the Casteliacone get thrown into the dumpster.

"Maybe you just have no taste." Ash replied as he took another sip of his water.

"Says the man who doesn't like tomato." Caitlin muttered under her breath.

Ash turned to Paul. "It's horrible isn't it?" He asked, grinning at Paul's reluctant nod, not wanting to get into the conversation between the two people before him.

"Maybe I need to teach all of you to have some class."

The conversation was interrupted by a noise of thunder which seemed to come from nowhere on the hot summer's day. Paul looked up and saw the white light flashing, which indicated it was pretty close, maybe a little too close for comfort.

"It's fine, it's just a Pokémon of mine." Ash muttered. "It came from near the ranch and Pikachu was working on some things with Staraptor. One thing probably led to another."

He then grabbed Paul's drink and had a sip. "Not bad, have to get me one of those." He muttered to himself and called the bartender over, a few brief words and the man was running back into the store to get the drinks ready.

"How's your team coming along?" Ash asked Paul absent-mindedly as he reached for a menu and tossed it to Caitlin. "Show us some class." He said with a wink as he turned back to his rival and friend.

"Should I really be chatting about this with you? We are rivals after all." Paul said confused by Ash's question.

"Eh, you know practically my whole team, don't tell me you spent all your time in Hoenn catching nothing man, you had some nice moves the last time we met up." Ash replied as he took off the sunglasses he had been wearing the whole time, unbuttoning the top of his shirt due to the warm weather.

"Basically you have two weeks before the tournament starts, if you're weak anywhere I want to help you tighten up, Unova has some great Pokémon to catch, I could picture you with a Hydreigon… Basically I'm helping you because you and Gary both start qualifiers next week, and I have to stop by Unova for business. Tell me what you want and I'll tell you where you can get it. Since I'm taking off in two days, you'll probably have five of those to find what you need. That's me assuming you come with, if not you can hang around here and Johto, then I'd be recommending Mount Silver."

Paul processed the information Ash had given him. Normally he would never have listened to his friend's advice, but Ash had the knowledge of training in far more regions than he had. Paul had only ever touched Kanto during Reggie's travels and that was for the purpose of facing the Battle Frontier alone, and when they met up in Unova, it was only for a few days since Reggie was in a breeding contest and Paul had come to support his brother. So he was interested because he was being offered a way to become stronger, and find stronger Pokémon to help him on his quest.

He wasn't strong enough, that had been what he had noticed in Viridian City when Ash fought Tobias. The Pedestal as he referred to it was made up of five tiers. The first consisted of the new trainers, who had just started out. The second of those with a few badges, yet to unlock their full potential, the third was those who had all their badges, yet their actual skill was lacking. Then there came the fourth and fifth tiers which in Pauls mind were easily interchangeable depending on how hard one worked, and how much natural talent they possessed.

It was something that was always overlook when it came to Pokémon training. Talent. It was either something you had, or something you didn't have and it was the one thing you couldn't give yourself. That ability to connect with your Pokémon was something only the elites were fully able to realize. It was what separated the third tier from the fourth and fifth, and what would keep them from climbing that ladder forever. Paul and Ash had always had that talent, but they'd used it to achieve the same goal through different means. Ash had showed him what love can do in raising a Pokémon, as he turned Paul's Chimchar into a powerhouse.

But Paul had shown Ash something to; at least he thought he had. While Ash had more natural talent, Paul had possessed more discipline. Ash could will his Pokémon back into a battle; Paul could train them so that no willing needed to be done. That was how they had been separated at the time, and it was through training and dedication that Ash had climbed the Pedestal, overtaking him and then going above any trainer before him in defeating Tobias's Pokémon at the Lily of the Valley Conference.

Paul had watched the battle, whilst he said he may have stayed, he left straight for Hoenn immediately, to do some soul-searching as it was more commonly known. Luckily for him, the boat he had gone onto had a T.V which showed the battle. To say he had been impressed had been an understatement, and some of the Pokémon which Ash had used had made him all the more interested in travelling through the regions. Particularly that Sceptile, it was only when Paul came to realize it wasn't Ash's best trained Pokémon, that he began to respect him as a train even more.

All that power Ash had possessed and he hadn't exploited it for a title, he'd stayed true to himself and used as many of his Sinnoh compatriots as possible. Paul respected that, he found it utterly stupid at the time, but he had still respected it. All the work Ash had done in developing what seemed to be mediocre Pokémon and turning them into respectable battlers was something Paul would never have considered doing until Hoenn. Not because he hadn't seen the value in it, but rather why wait for strength to blossom, when you could have those who were already strong and then make them stronger?

If life was a battle of survivor of the fittest, then surely the fittest were those who were strong straight away? Thus weren't the fittest also the strongest? Weren't the only ones who were really worth training those who were already strong?

It was the way Paul had dedicated his training for his whole career, and it was a way he had been less than willing to part with. But what if every Pokémon he had released had become something like the Infernape the two trainers had shared? The Pokémon which had embodied their rivalry since its beginning and was one of the most amazing Pokémon either had encountered. It had turned from a weak defenceless Pokémon with an uncontrollable ability, to beating his Electivire on the grandest stage of all. Poetic justice in a sense, considering his Electivire had beaten Infernape all the time in training, on Paul's orders.

So as he looked around the small shopping area from their table outside the building, he wondered what he needed for his team, he had his Sinnoh powerhouses, Electivire and Magmortar, Torterra, then he had his Hoenn team, which Ash would not be learning anything about until the tournament started, if he had his way. Thinking of those guys two could probably fit into his team to balance out the weaknesses and the distinct lack of pace he possessed. One more quick Pokémon though would be more than welcome, he wouldn't be able to last with Pokémon that were slow in this competition, because the opponents could be hitting twice as anything he had ever come up against.

So he just needed that sixth ace up his sleeve. And looking at his team as it was, he just needed to find that one piece of the jigsaw. He needed something fast and powerful, a Dragonite would be perfect. But a Dragonite needed to be raised from a Dragonair at least, since 90% of them were more likely to kill you than battle you in the wild. Despite their appearance, those bastards were deadly. Battling a Hydreigon was less dangerous than walking into Dragonite Valley, one of the few places where wild Dragonite could be found. Walking into Dragonite Valley was something only Dragon type trainers could do, and even then some never made it back.

Suddenly the Pokémon hit him from nowhere; it would be perfect, utterly perfect. From what he knew about it from locals in Unova though, it was a bitch of a thing to find.

"Do you know where I can pick up a Zoroark?" Paul asked as he took a sip from his drink.

A Zoroark would be perfect, with the right set up he would be able to create a monster. High speed, high attack power. Defensively they were frail, but you had to fit one in order to

"Had to pick the difficult one didn't you?" Ash mused out loud. "Let's see… There might be one in Lostlorn Forest, that was the location of the last one I saw, though there have been sightings in Castelia City in the past. It really depends on the time you go. They love Casteliacones though, so bring a few with you, might help in baiting one." He suggested as their lunch was delivered.

"Finally stopped mentoring?" Caitlin commented as Ash launched into his food, he hadn't eaten in hours.

"Always gotta be on the look-out for the next recruit, that's what he said didn't he?"

"He probably meant while you were still in Unova. Foreign Champions aren't all that common, or popular for that matter." She advised him whilst cringing at the way Ash was eating his food, literally shoving in as much as he could while trying to talk with a mouth full of pizza.

"Oh well, Iris is here, somewhere." Ash ground out through the meal he was eating, he hadn't seen the dragon type trainer since his battle yesterday.

"Iris? Oh god, don't do that to me, I wouldn't be able to take it." Caitlin complained. "_You're such a kid _every time we say something she doesn't agree with. Metagross will kill her in three days."

"Sorry" Paul interjected. "But why is Ash talking like Cynthia used to?" He then looked at Caitlin before asking. "And you're a trainer?"

They both looked at him for a moment, utterly baffled as to what he was talking about. Then Ash hit his head in frustration. "Fuck I forgot I hadn't told him yet, I was going to wait for the Unova trip."

"How the hell do you forget something like that? You only just invited him on the boat for godsake." Caitlin said as she slapped the trainer over the head.

"Hey, I've had my mind on other things at the moment, like how I'm going to last through a week of utter boredom without walking off the battlefield, or whether I'm going to let him back into my team. Been pretty distracted lately."

He then turned to look at Paul "Let's see we'll start with her." He then cleared his throat with a grin. "Gotta act professional." He said with a humorous glint in his eye. "This is Caitlin Grange Former Member of the Sinnoh Battle Frontier and current member of the Unova Elite Four. Contrary to popular belief she is not a Co-ordinator, nor does she have a co-ordinating bone in her body, no offense." He hastily interjected the last part. "Meanwhile I'm…"

"Ash Ketchum, Champion of Unova." A voice behind him interjected.

Ash frowned, not only had his grand intro been interrupted, but he knew by who and that was what annoyed him the most.

"Lance, what can I do for you?" Ash asked as he went to motion for another seat. "Want to join us?"

The Kanto Champion looked at the five people awkwardly as May and Dawn made their way over upon seeing both their lunch, and the Champion of Kanto standing in front of them.

"I wish I could but I'm here strictly on business, which is why I was wondering if you could come with me for a few minutes." Lance replied. "G-men business."

"Aah, I see." Ash muttered staring into his glass.

He then stared at the rest of his friends before he gave a sigh of resignation and stood up. "I'll see you guys later, tell mum I might not be home tonight." He told them as he then walked up to Lance. "Follow me." He said and started to walk out of the town, the Kanto Champion complied as they left the towns streets.

"Might not be home tonight?" Lance asked as they hurried through the town, not wanting to get caught up by journalists or small kids.

"Well based on Alder's report that I had him send in to you, there are about three reasons as to why you're here." Ash replied as they broke off the main path and started to head towards the bridge where he had spent the majority of his child-hood. "And any of those three are pretty much enough to get me on board for at least one mission. Despite my hesitations as to whether I'll be helping the G-men in the future, or allowing Unova to join them for that matter." He summarised as the river came into view.

XxX

They came to a seat that was located nearby and sat there, the bridge a long-forgotten tourist attraction. The chair whilst sturdy now could probably have done with a coat or two of polish, maybe a new paintjob. All things he could probably do himself if he cared enough.

"So why wouldn't you join the G-men?" Lance questioned as he crossed his legs and leaned back against the chair.

"Well it'll depend on the first mission you give _me._" Ash replied. "As for Unova itself getting involved, I'm not going to let that happen. Ruling the region is enough, without being at loggerheads with the government."

"Trouble in Unova?"

"Unova's government was wiped out by Ghetsis during an attack on Castelia City, right now the Champion is acting head of Unova, and if I have my way I'll probably keep it like that." Ash stated as he looked directly at the Kanto Champion.

"I never knew you fancied yourself as a politician." Lance said as he stared straight back at the trainer before him, trying to gauge his true motives.

"Please." Ash snorted derisively. "Me doing this is the complete opposite of being one. I remember the time we spent in Hoenn, when we weren't trying to stop Magma and Aqua you were buried up to your neck in bureaucracy, I can get more done by myself in a year than what you and your government have been able to in seven. And before I leave, I'll give it back to the people."

"So you're willing to turn Unova into a dictatorship under your rule, but not under anyone elses?" Lance asked him. "Isn't it a bit hypocritical to place so much faith in yourself, yet none in those who will follow you?"

"I only place so much faith in myself because I know what needs to be done, and I know I can do it." Ash shot back. "Do you really think I'll be the man who starts a regional war?"

"I don't think it'll be you who starts it, but I don't think any regions government is going to let your approach slide." Lance replied. "It may seem like a good idea, but do you think you can put up with thousands of eyes scrutinising every move you make, just waiting for a reason to launch an attack?"

"The only reason they'll do so… Is if I succeed." Ash finished, his voice laden with what Lance interpreted as regret, or finality.

Ash looked away from him at that moment, noticing a group of moving specks in the sky, they weren't clouds, so the solution seemed to be Pokémon. So the question remained. Who's Pokémon were they? His were currently back at the ranch doing some training, Gary's were with him as well, meanwhile Caitlin didn't have a flying type that could fly that far and Paul honestly couldn't be bothered enough. Was he being spied upon already? If not, then who exactly was up there? And what were they doing so high up?

"So what led to you coming here in the first place mate?" Ash asked so they could return to the original topic of their meeting, Business.

"We think we've found Ghetsis and the remnants of Team Plasma." Lance replied, noticing the spark in Ash's eyes with satisfaction.

Rage was a powerful emotion, Lance had learnt that eons ago. And used properly, Rage and revenge were two of the best weapons a person could have when trying persuade someone to join them. Manipulation worked best when you had something to give the other, and if you could give them exactly what they wanted. Very few could resist the temptation. He was banking on Ash caving into his rage, he'd even said himself that if he gave him who he wanted, Ash would join.

So here he was, handing Ghetsis to Ash on a silver platter. Personally Lance viewed the man as a minor threat; the real threat though, was who he was negotiating with.

Giovanni was a dangerous man, and if he had Ghetsis and Plasma working with him then he would be even more difficult to beat. The problem with Giovanni though, was that Lance had _nothing _on the man. Everyone knew he was the head of Team Rocket, yet there wasn't a damned thing any of them could do about it. The question hadn't become when they should arrest Giovanni, but whether they could get any scrap of evidence in order to convict him. A task which had become increasingly unlikely with each passing month and didn't look like eventuating any time soon.

Fighting a man with a genius intellect was difficult, no matter how smart, ruthless or well-connected Lance was. Giovanni always found a way to match him, to stay out of harm's way as Team Rocket went from strength to strength. It was why he had been so determined to come here, if Ghetsis was working with the Rockets he could hit a double whammy. Convince Ash to help him, gain a valuable asset, and someone who would be more than capable in joining him in his hunt to bring down his enemy. Take down two organisations at the same time and bring the regions that much closer to unification.

"So you're giving me the one person I will kill if I ever so much as see him again, on a silver platter. And you have absolutely no qualms about this idea of yours?" Ash queried, trying to test the depths that his friend would go to in order to get him to join his organisation.

Lance thought about it for a moment. Was that really what he was about to do?

"Yes." He said simply.

Ash nodded before he stretched out a hand. "Looks like we have a deal."

Lance grinned. "Welcome to the G-men."

As Lance went to leave Ash felt his mind drift back to the battle that had started all of this.

XxX

_The chanting of the crowd as they screamed his name echoed through the floor into his room with an almost ghostlike effect as fifty-thousand people prepared for what was being billed as one of the greatest Pokémon Battles to ever be witnessed. He entered the battlefield from the locker room below to a standing ovation as the crowd chanted his name. He felt the very opposite of what he had been expecting. He wasn't daunted, he wasn't nervous; he was pumped, the adrenaline which was racing through his system was only intensified by the crowds chanting. He loved it._

_Sitting in the throne with a regal like look was N, who stared at the trainer in front of him before rising from his seat and trading the crown for the trusty cap that he had worn for his entire journey._

_"Aah, you made it, I was expecting as much. After all what is the battle for the future of the world without the two heroes that must decide it?" N spoke eyeing Ash's belt and noting the five Pokémon which were hung across it before noticing the familiar lump in his pocket._

_"You came all this way to battle me… But Zekrom is not responding. You haven't yet been recognized as the hero, have you? How disappointing. I actually kind of liked you a little. Through our many battles, I got the feeling that you might be a Trainer who truly cares for Pokémon!" "But I was kidding myself. The idea of Trainers getting to know each other through battles is ridculous! You have two options. Challenge me to a fight you can't win, or leave this place and watch the birth of a new world where Pokémon are free of people!" N continued as he stared at Ash._

_"What I desire is a world for Pokémon, and Pokémon alone. I will separate Pokémon from people, so Pokémon can regain their original power. I will prove the value of my beliefs even if it means my Pokémon friends get hurt! Since you've come this far, I believe you are equally determined. If that's so, prove it to me! Show me the depth of your determination!_

"_It doesn't have to be like this N! We can co-exist, we have for millennia." Ash shouted back over the battlefield. _

_N merely gestured to the thousands of fans above them. "I think it's a little late for that don't you? Man up Ash, you can either beat me, or you can't, and unless I'm lying here dead at the end of this battle, I will persevere until my dream becomes a reality. I suppose the question now is, how much will you sacrifice for yours? The Gods demand nothing but complete devotion from their chosen, are you that devoted?" _

XxX

Ash looked up as he watched the fading figure of Lance and his Dragonite. He then looked at the co-ordinated Lance had given him with the appropriate passwords as well. He clutched the broken Poke-ball on his necklace with enough force he thought it would crack.

_I'm going to avenge you N, I will make your vision a reality._ Ash promised himself._ Because a world without suffering, is the only world worth fighting for… And I'll fight for it til the last breath leaves my body, just as you did. _

A/N: Not sure what to make of this chapter, from the Lance Ash encounter onwards was all done this night so kinda rushed, if anyone is willing to Beta shoot me a PM because I'm really crap with grammar and stuff, as for Ash and N, I'll be going over their conflict in maybe 3-4 chapters from now, it really depends how this fleshes itself out as I get about writing it. Hope you liked it, I'm not really good with dialogue, so if you liked it that's great, if you hated it I'm probably expecting the hate more tbh XD

See yas around, Wynter


End file.
